Famed ‘Three Horsemen’ to be inducted into Ga. Radio Hall of Fame

Macon’s legendary trio of deejays collectively known as “The Three Horsemen” will be inducted into the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame at a ceremony to be held here Oct. 20, according to the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame.

Charles “Big Saul” Greene, Ray “Satellite Papa” Brown and Hamp “King Bee” Swain were brought together in 1957 by WIBB owner Tom Maxwell, becoming the first station in Macon to offer programming aimed at black listeners. At the October ceremony, the three will receive the prestigious “Founders and Directors” award in the sixth annual induction ceremony.

Greene, a Jones County native, died in January at his Florida home. In a Telegraph article from January, Brown credited Greene with convincing the other two to join the station.

The trio was a hit with listeners, drawing crowds of 5,000 or more at live events.

Greene also loaned R&B legend James Brown the money he needed to record a demo of his song, “Try Me” at the WIBB studio during that era, which helped launch Brown’s career.

Swain was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 2008. He often served as host at the Douglass Theatre’s “Teen Party” talent competition, won numerous times by soul legend Otis Redding.

Milledgeville native and former Macon TV weatherman Joel Godard will serve as master of ceremonies. Godard was the announcer for “Late Night” with Conan O’Brien.

Tickets for the event go on sale May 1. For more information, visit www.grhof.com.

Information from Telegraph archives was used in this report.

This story was originally published March 29, 2012 at 4:50 PM with the headline "Famed ‘Three Horsemen’ to be inducted into Ga. Radio Hall of Fame."